Asher wasn't sure what was worse: the certainty of dying, or the humiliation of dying to a fucking Mage.
The Frozen Chains bit into his legs and torso, ice gnawing through his scorched armor until his breath came out in ragged plumes. Across the shattered plane, Bale kept his distance, palms raised, threads of crimson fire coiling around his fingers.
Three…
Frost cracked along Asher's shoulders as he struggled against the chains.
Two… His heart hammered against his ribs, a war drum under his skin.
One.
Rage boiled up like molten iron.
Will of the Colossus activated
Muscles twitched as his Critical Strike Chance spiked. The world shuddered. Chains shattered in a burst of shards as Asher exploded forward, boots gouging deep marks in the frozen dirt. Bale had two seconds left on his cast.
He's so strong, Ren breathed. But he can't defeat Bale. No one can.
Pay attention, Ren. Watch what happens.
Asher leapt into the air, axe overhead. It came down in a thundering crash that split the ground, but Bale had already moved, teleporting thirty yards away. Asher watched in horror as the cast finished.
Bright light, immense heat. A flaming spear cut the night sky as it arced toward him.
He fumbled in his inventory and threw a Haunted Coin. Shadows came to life all around Bale, biting and screaming. He ignored them as they whittled away his Mana shield, already starting his next cast.
Asher held steady as the sulfuric smell of his burning hair intruded his nostrils. His skin blistered. He stared down the spear, vision consumed by flames until the last moment.
Spell Reflect Activated
The spear slammed into an invisible barrier, inches from Asher's face, then bounded back toward Bale. It crashed in a torrent of flames, transforming the landscape around him into a hellfire.
Asher didn't wait for Bale to recover, capitalizing on the chaos. Bale was at 50% health to Asher's 30%. For the first time, a sliver of hope blossomed.
He targeted one of the apparitions swarming Bale and used Courageous Sacrifice, invisible forces pulling him toward the apparition in exchange for some minor damage. He landed in front of the flame covered Bale and swung his axe. It tore through cloth and flesh until it met bone.
Bale screamed; Asher didn't stop.
He followed it up with a shock inducing haymaker to Bale's jaw. The System called it Pummel; Asher just called it five borrowed seconds.
Asher activated Overwhelming Rage and his vision narrowed as unfiltered blood lust and power ripped through him. He stacked this with his Trinket of the Fallen, he was going to make this count.
He grunted as his axe sank deep into Bale's spine and he felt a fraction of the damage dealt seep back into himself as health. He let the blood lust overtake him, his axe a blur of fury and pain.
His heart pounded in his ears as the System announced
Execute Range Achieved
Asher roared as he performed Execute, all his power and rage dumped into one powerful swing, slicing deep into Bale's chest. Manic laughter bubbled up as he saw Bale's health plummet to 17%.
Can he—? Ren gasped in her mind. Can he actually kill Bale?
No. Lorena already knew what came next.
Asher kicked Bale in the chest as he ripped out his axe, leaving behind a gaping hole. He stood there, towering over the Mage as he enjoyed this moment. It was rare that he had a fight as challenging as this one, and he wanted to honor the Mage for providing it.
He raised his axe one final time and activated War Machine for increased Execute damage.
But then the world went cold and dark. His vision tunneled to a mere pinprick as he felt a grinding against his ribs, like nails on a chalkboard but felt deep inside his soul. His eyes fell on the bloody sword that protruded from his chest.
Alert: Health below 5%. Exit Everwind immediately
Asher fell to one knee, his mind heavy with fear. Where had that sword come from?
He watched as a Rogue helped Bale to his feet.
Asher had faced death many times before this moment, but never had he come to accept that it was the end. He had always imagined that he'd feel a surge of anger, a last desperate act of retaliation. But all he felt was an odd sense of calm, knowing that at least he went out like a Warrior should, bleeding in the dirt, the signs of a hard fought battle all around him.
He closed his eyes and accepted his fate. He had fought valiantly, honorably even. Leave it to a fucking Mage to cheat in the final moment.
"Tell Colton we won't stop until the last of you falls."
Asher's hands tingled and his eyes shot open. How did Bale know about Colton? He used Identify on the Rogue as he and Bale approached a glowing portal.
Lord Shade, Human, Level 100 Rogue
The moment the two of them were through the portal his interface's combat alert silenced, and a large "EXIT EVERWIND" button appeared. He slammed it.
The world faded to black, then a flash of light lit the back of his eyelids as the helmet lifted up.
Colton was leaning against a chair next to him. "So?"
Asher sat up and rubbed his chest, finding the familiar portacath where Lord Shade's blade had been just moments ago. It all felt so real.
"How many Adventurers has Bale killed so far?"
Colton grimaced and rubbed at his forehead. "Twelve. Morrison is the exception, the only one he's left alive. Probably found out that once they die in Everwind we can't retrieve their memories, so he left him alive to send us a message."
Asher nodded, deep in thought. Morrison was beyond strong. That power, that rage, he hadn't felt strength like that in… Ever. Even in his prime he hadn't been like that.
But Morrison fought for show, for entertainment. He was boastful and flashy. And flashy got you killed.
Colton leaned in and placed a hand on Asher's shoulder, even the small amount of added weight causing the discs in his back to protest.
"You felt it, right? The power. The strength. The lack of constant pain, even in battle."
Had he felt it? His mind wouldn't stop feeling it. The strength, smooth joints, lightning quick reactions from muscles that hadn't been destroyed and built back up over years of improper care.
But then his mind flashed to an image of the woman, Lorena. He was still stuck on her even weeks later. He had retired for a reason. He told himself it was because of his failing health, but his heart had quit long before that. Being an assassin who couldn't detach from the job got you killed.
"And what happens to Lorena?"
Colton let out a sigh, a pained expression on his face that almost looked real. "I know, it's hard. But the System will handle her. She's in pain, Asher. Starving, poor, working every day in brutal manual labor just to scrape by."
Asher had known that kind of pain as a child. The hopelessness.
"We discovered parallel worlds two years ago, but nothing has come even close to the magic of Everwind. In the past eighteen months since we discovered it we've seen incredible things. It's an amazing place." His smile was genuine.
"But it's also filled with corruption. The rich get richer, the poor get, well, you've seen her."
Asher looked around Colton's office. The view from his window alone made it hard to believe a word he was saying. He was the definition of maliciously wealthy.
But Asher needed something to cling to. Something to justify this one last job.
Colton held up a tablet, the lines on his forehead deepening. "You have what, four months left?"
Asher grimaced, not from the nausea but from the reality of his situation. The doctors had given him six months if he was lucky. Nine would be a miracle. He was now half way through lucky and getting desperate.
"We're offering you another life. Do you know how rare that is?" Colton's voice was almost pleading.
Asher closed his eyes for a second and breathed through the pain, physical and emotional. When he opened them again his stare was cold and hard.
"Why me? Why not send another Adventurer after Bale? I've never even been to Everwind. The Morrison whatever—Experience was my first time ever using one of those contraptions."
Colton leaned back in his chair, eyes toward the ceiling. "We need you because you aren't an Adventurer."
He sat forward, forearms on his knees. "You've had an impressive career taking care of men just like Bale. And that's what we need, him taken care of. Now. We're bleeding. Desperate. We've had to cancel eight storylines in the last three months. Fans are angry, shareholders are furious. We need a professional."
A screen on the wall behind Colton transitioned to an image of Morrison, large two headed battleaxe in hand, a war cry building in his throat. Asher's muscles twitched at the memory. The power.
Colton slid a thick contract across the table.
Asher picked up the pen, his hand steady for the first time in a long time, and signed.
The world faded to black, then the inn rematerialized around Lorena as she opened her eyes, the memory over.
Happy? She thought to Ren.
Ren was silent for a while, long enough for Lorena to think—hope that she was gone for good.
Then she came screaming back.
You came here. You killed me. Stole my body, all so you can get squashed like a Mana grub under Bale's boot?
I'm not going to die. I'm going to kill him.
Ren's laugh was manic.
You? Kill Bale? He's the most powerful Mage in the kingdom.
You don't know what I'm capable of.
Lorena knew Bale was strong, but where Morrison had strength she had instinct, technique, years of experience.
None of that will help you. You nearly died to a level 10 spider in the forest. Bale will crush you. Us. Ren's voice cracked. I'll die because of your foolishness. Again.
Lorena audibly growled. Fine. If Ren wanted to see what she was capable of, she'd show her.
Lorena squeezed her eyes shut, summoning memories from Earth. A different kind of power.
The diplomat in her crosshairs half a mile away. Then the way he fell, a fresh bullet hole in his forehead.
The desperate screams as the Russian Oligarch's mansion burned, all the exit routes collapsed.
The strength of the steroid abusing bodyguard as he pinned her down, then the satisfaction she experienced as her knife found his throat.
She was ruthless. Strategic. Powerful.
Ren was quiet for a long moment, maybe Lorena had proven her point. She got off the bed and undressed.
Stop.
She stared at herself in the reflection of the window. Two words came to her in a clinical voice. Small. Meek. Her hip bones stuck out dramatically and the tops of her ribs threatened to poke through the skin.
Just stop. This is disgusting. Ren's voice was tight.
Her arms were wiry, muscular but untrained. This body didn't have the thousands of hours of muscle memory beat into it. But it could.
I said stop! Ren's voice brought with it a flash of anger that Lorena felt deep inside her.
I'm not some tool for you to exploit. I'm a person.
Lorena's hands dropped to her sides as something uncomfortable flickered through her. She turned and rolled her neck, focusing on the lack of pain and wide range of motion.
You're a coward, not a martyr. Ren seethed. I wasn't someone who needed saving. You were just afraid of dying.
The words hit like physical blows. She tried to brush them off but her mind wouldn't let her. They swam in her vision, the truth to them something she had known deep inside but refused to admit.
"I'm what I need to be to survive." Her voice cracked in the empty room.
A sob echoed through her mind, Ren's voice broken. Tightness spread in her chest as a lump of sadness pushed its way up Lorena's throat. A tear rolled down her gaunt cheek.
This wasn't her. She didn't cry, she didn't break. Lorena dug her nails into her thighs, pain fighting the despair swirling inside.
Ren continued to sob, her grief bleeding through the body they shared.
"Shut up!" Lorena screamed into the room. Her voice was shrill and panicked. Ren went quiet and a quiver of fear ran down their spine.
Lorena opened her interface and stared at the class choice. Her eyes flickered to Hunter. Ren was right, she did owe her that. The chance for Ren to live the life she'd been denied.
But if she went with Hunter, they'd both die.
She selected Rogue.
Achievement! Class selected. You are now a Rogue.
New Abilities available. See your Spellbook for more details.
A final whimper sounded in her mind.
She lay back on the bed. Her body was whole, healthy, pain-free. But something else hurt now, something deeper.
She had spent so long focusing on escaping her physical pain she never imagined the emotional toll of her choice would hurt even worse.
"Ren?" She whispered.
Silence.